Page 38 of Whispers of the Void

She nods. “Thank you, Hyva.”

He grabs his scanner and exits with a look in my direction that I don’t have to be inside his mind to decipher. We’ll be discussing the snarl as soon as I get her settled.

“Will you show me how to use the bathtub? I couldn’t figure it out earlier.” The sound of her voice pulls me from my spiraling thoughts.

“Of course.”

I watch her closely as she scoots to the edge of the bed. Because it’s made for Zeahirians, it’s tall enough that her feet don't touch the ground, so she has to slide off. It’s probably her size that makes me feel so protective and nothing else. How can a good male not want to protect a creature he’s bigger than?

I follow her into the bathing room and tap the lip of the tub. I lift the lid containing the pad with buttons for all the options for salts and temperature. She can read the language, but I explain the differences in the salts and why we bathe with them. Once she settles on a relaxation blend and tells me how hot she wants the water I turn it on. Water pours from the ceiling above.

“Oh.” She smiles as she looks up. “That explains why I didn’t see a faucet.” She gives my arm another casual squeeze. “Thank you.”

“Will you be okay getting in and out?”

“Yes. I feel much better now.”

I leave her and close the door behind me. We’re supposed to get hit by strong flares tonight, so I cross the bedroom to the balcony doors and pull them firmly shut. Once the locking mechanism is engaged and the screen that blocks radiation is closed, I leave. The sound of water sloshing gently in the tub is all I hear from her.

Instead of walking down the guest wing to find Hyva, I slink off to my own room. I can’t deal with the lecture I’m sure I have coming my way from him. My room is dark and empty as I close the door behind me.

“We need to talk about that mating snarl.” Hyva’s voice comes from behind me as soon as I light the sconce.

“Why are you hiding in the dark?” So much for time and space to sort my thoughts.

“Because I knew you weren’t going to come to me so we could talk about this. Instead, you were going to lay in bed and brood. Probably spin a bunch of lies to yourself about the snarl not meaning what it means.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Bullshit.”

This is the problem with surrounding yourself with those that have known you your whole life. I can’t lie to them; they see straight through it. Stars, they won’t even let me lie to myself.

I busy myself locking up my room the same way I did Neev’s. He sits in the chair beside my desk and crosses his leg, content to wait me out. His foot swings back and forth patiently as he watches me.

“What?” I growl in his direction as his quiet presence grates on my nerves.

“Nothing.” He grins.

“I’ll remove you from the medical team.”

“You could, but you won’t. And you know you can’t get rid of me that easily, regardless. It’s not a bad thing to be pulled to the female. I think she returns the feelings.”

“Humans don’t have mates.”

He taps his chest. “This doesn’t care.”

“The timing is terrible.”

“It is.” He sits there, swinging his foot and watching me. “Fate doesn’t care about the timing.”

“How long have you known?”

“Since you lunged at Mydax. Your scent changed. It was subtle, but having experienced a life of yourodors, I immediately knew.”

“Do you think Altis and Vynia know?”

“Probably not. Like I said, it was subtle.”

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